Investigative Selfism

Can we truly grow if we're rejecting certain parts of ourselves, denying certain experiences, or holding onto shame?

Unfortunately, that's not what different disciplines say. So if we want to talk about empowerment- which has been the topic of my third podcast season - we have to talk about own our life story in a way that's healthy and involves a lot of self-compassion. But we also have to identify the potential dangers that we might find on the way.

That's what I do in my episode! I also share a personal story as a cautionary tale of over-identification with certain experiences.

I think you'll love it. More importantly, I think you'll find a lot of inspiration for reflection.

When do you feel strong? When do you feel most like yourself? When does your life "make sense" to you? When do you feel proud of who - and how - you are?I'd say, these are excellent questions to ask if we want to lead lives of authenticity and courage.

Watch this as a Youtube video here: https://youtu.be/3PkaN67mpC8https://youtu.be/3PkaN67mpC8

Have you ever reflected on what courage means to you? I'd say, to lead a life that's authentically ours, sometimes (always?:) we need to engage in active reflection - and take conscious action - towards the kind of person we want to be.

This is no easy task. And how deep you want to go with this work depends on how willing and how equipped you are to do it.In my episode, I present four suggestions: four reminders, questions, and invitations to go increasingly deeper into this work:

Please watch it and see what works for you. I hope you choose to do the work. It’s never easy but it’s always worth it.

To say "I'm a perfectionist" might not be as cute as you thought.

There are many ways to define empowerment and any progress toward being the authentic and intentional selves matters. But is there something else?

Do we think we have the capacity to change? And if we do, what would that look like?

If you said YES to the first question, you might have what is called a growth mindset. It's a simple yet empowering concept that can help us shed more light on how we are showing up in this world and how to close a gap between how things are and how we'd like them to be.

If we're basing our growth on something, let's make sure it's not destructive. And that's exactly what shame is! 

In my episode, I explain the difference between shame and guilt, why shame is not your friend, how we can approach shame, and what's a healthier base for us to base our growth and learnings on. 

In short, shame is not a good house for us to live in. There are much better environments we can choose for ourselves.  

Why would we ever do anything, including work on ourselves?

You can also watch it as a video on my Youtube channel: https://youtu.be/7iS_3F7FYpo

"Just have better problems!" would be arrogant - and ignorant "advice" to give to anyone. That's why it's not what my episode is about.

It's about reframing certain challenges in our lives in ways that are more empowering. As we do that, we can see that some challenges are "safer" (more familiar) than others. Behind the safe challenges what we often find are higher-quality problems: the ones that bring more meaning into our lives.